Improvement in grain-drills



UNITED ST T PATENT OFFICE- ALONZO RUNYAN, OF CLARKE COUNTY, OHIO.

IMPROVEMENTIN .GRAIN-DRILLSY.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 198,047, dated December11, 1877; application filed March 17, 1875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALONZO RUNYAN, of the county of Clarke and State ofOhio, have invented certain Improvements in Grain-Drills, of which thefollowing is a specification My invention relates to the feed mechanismof grain-drills and consists in a novel construction of the distributer,its object being to discharge the grain or seed in a regular andcontinuous manner from the largest to the smallest size, and in anyquantity required, with minute exactness. The quantity discharged isregulated by a simple pivoted stop, which opens and closes thedischarging-orifice. It is operated by a rod extending through theseries of distributers under the hopper. At the end is affixed anindicator, which registers the quantity sown.

The distributor shell or cup is made in two parts, which are rivetedtogether. The main part is circular in its general form, and containsthe feed-wheel. The other half of the shell is cut away on one side ofits axial part, and has a helical channel or semiannular recess leadingdown from the hopper partinto the cavity of the feed-wheel on one sideof the feed-shaft, through which the seed is conveyed. A solidellipse-shapedblock, a, on it, surrounds the shaft and projects into thecavity of the wheel to the bottom of the same, confining the seed to thechannel. Theblock a has anotch, 0'', cut in its lower rear part entirelythrough it. The projecting gate or cut-off fits into this notch abovethe channel when the latch is pushed up into its place, leaving thedischarging-orifice entirely open, and, as the latch is dropped, theorifice is closed by the cut-off as it approaches the inner surface ofthe wheelflange. The wheel has but one flange on it, projecting towardthe discharging side. This is grooved, the grooves running diagonallyfrom the edge to the bottom of its concavity backward, so as to preventcutting the grain as it is forced towardtheissuing-point. Theflange ofthe feed-wheel is beveled, being thinner at the edge, to allow the seedto roll out easilyin discharging.

Figure 1 is a side elevation of my distributer, showing the issuingside. Fig. 2 is arearview of the same, with feed and indicator shaftsinserted. Fig. 3 is an inside view, in elevation,

of the side B, showing its hopper and feed channel, also the inner endof the cut-off.

. In Figs. 1 and 2, A is the circular part of the cup, which containsthe feed-wheel a. B is the other half of the distributer-cup, to thelower rear part of which ispivoted the latch b bythe rod 0. This latchis made fiat andthin, except at its free end, which is made in segmentalform, being cut to fit the rear edge of B, which is semicircular at thepart where the lower end of channel (1 ends. A side lug, b, on latch 1)projects into the cavity of wheel a,

(being shaped to fit the slope of the flange,)

which operates as a gate or cut-off to open and close the.discharging-orifice f, as the rod 0, Fig. 2, is partially rotated. Theblock part a of B extending into the cavity of a, closes it entirelyfrom the passage of the grain except through the helical channel (1.When the projection b is dropped down to the fiangez' the cavitya isclosed, except what is shown inFig. 1 at the rear of B, left of figure.In this figure the diagonal grooves g g are shown on the inside of theflange i of wheel a. The wheel fits loosely in its shell A, its hubprojecting through the latter, as seen in Fig. 3, feed-shaft 3 extendingthrough it. It is secured to the feed-shaft by set screw .9. Latch b isprovided with a hub, through which the rod 0 extends. It is also securedon the rod in the same manner. In the dotted lines, Fig. 2, the verticalcross-sectionalview of the'wheela may be seen, showing the relativeposition of the operative parts which regulate the discharge. A singleintermediate gear-wheel is used to drive the feed-shaft from thehub-gear.

I am aware that a flanged feed-wheel is not new, and I do not claim itas my invention but What I claim is- 1. The distributer-cup, consistingof thetwo pieces A and B,the latter cut away at its lower part, h, andprovided with acircular notch, 0', for the reception of latch b and itssegmental lug b, as shown and specified;

2. Latch I), pivoted at the rear lower part of side piece B at the point0, and provided with the projecting part b, as and for the purposehereinbefore set forth.

3. The abuttingblock a of part B for con fining the grain to the channel(1, provided with the notch c for the reception of the free end of latchb, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

4. In combination with the single-flanged wheel at, with diagonalgrooves g g running backward on the inside of its flange, theabutting-block a of part B, notch c, and the segmental projection b oflatch 12 and rod or shaft G,to which it is connected and operated,substantially as herein set forth and described.

5. In a distributer for grain-drills, an ad-

